Power Struggles With Your Child

Many behavior problems that you experienced with you child are power struggles between what you want and your child to do and what he/ she is willing to do. This is a win/lose situation. To avoid getting into these battles, try choosing words that get cooperation and won’t cause resistance. Put downs, threats, demands, and criticisms create fighting words. Instead, try using clear statements, explanations, and choices to get your child to cooperate with you. Always remember to stay consistent and follow through on a daily basis so your child understands what is expected of him/ her.

Examples of giving a child a choice would be:

“Would you like to wear your blue shirt or brown shirt?”

A clear statement would be:

“When you put your toys away you may play with Mary.”

Fighting statements would look like this:

“How many times have I told you?” AND “Do it because I said so.”

If you have any questions, you are welcome to ask for advice or suggestions from management or our Child Development specialists.